Pitches wanted (narrative features) (worldwide) | $1+ per word

COMPANY/PUBLICATION: INSIDER 

Edith Honan, Features Editor at Insider, is looking for pitches:

Freelancers: I run a Features desk at Insider. We're seeing deeply-reported, character-driven narrative features that break ground, help us make sense of the world, and are fun to read. We'd love to hear from you

Insider is a digital outlet but our features read (and are edited, we hope) like magazine stories. Insider has an enormous reach and we love to think outside the box. We want illuminating profiles, surprising deep-dives, stories exposing wrongdoing and the human impacts of policy.

The best pitching advice I can give: Read what the editor has already published. That's how you'll know a) if your idea/approach are a good fit and b) if you want to work with them (Also, it comes through in your pitch and is very flattering, which works in your favor.

Pitches should include:

• Tentative hed/dek that gets to the heart of it
• What's new and valuable here?
• Who are the central characters?
• What's your access?
• Reporting plan
• Timeline
• Proposed length

Pay is $1/word and up.

Here are some of the stores I've published and loved, plus some context about what we're after (All the longreads features I've edited are listed here chronologically: https://businessinsider.com/category/longreads)

• This story by Kelsey Vlamis told the definitive story of a climbing disaster on Denali and included extensive interviews with nearly all of those involved: https://www.businessinsider.com/inside-a-fall-from-denali-north-americas-tallest-peak-2022-7
• A Covid-era experiment that saw people released early from federal prison was covered as a policy story. Jamie Roth gave us this unforgettable portrait of Kelly Esquivel as she rebuilt her life and reconnected with her kids—only to be locked up again: https://www.businessinsider.com/do-these-4000-federal-inmates-belong-behind-bars-2021-8
• There were tons of profiles of experienced, capable fighters who traveled to Ukraine in early 2022 to join the fight. Reporting from Ukraine, Katie Livingstone profiled two ordinary volunteers and followed their journey: https://www.businessinsider.com/they-went-to-ukraine-to-be-war-heroes-and-fight-russians-2022-4
• For years, student debt has been treated like no other debt, shielded even in bankruptcy. Cezary Podkul sought to figure out why and produced this profile of a lawyer's crusade to do something about it: https://www.businessinsider.com/the-lawyer-who-became-don-quixote-of-canceling-student-debt-2021-5
• Mexico's Lord of the Skies, Amado Carrillo Fuentes, was the subject of a decades-long conspiracy that he staged his death. Just in time for his story to be featured in the final season of Narcos: Mexico, Noah Hurowitz dug into it: https://www.businessinsider.com/the-curious-afterlife-of-the-lord-of-the-skies-2021-11
• From South Africa, Ryan Lenora Brown revisited a major scandal in ultramarathon racing and gave the two brothers at the center of it the chance to explain the idiotic thing they did when they were young: https://www.businessinsider.com/the-not-quite-redemption-of-south-africas-infamous-marathon-cheats-2022-12

CONTACT INFORMATION (please do not share the email address publicly):

• Submissions: ehonan@insider.com
• Website: https://www.businessinsider.com

TO HELP YOU CRAFT YOUR PITCH:

• Learn more about the publication: Insider Inc. is a global news and lifestyle publication that aims to inform and inspire the digital generation. It covers what passionate people actually want to know—from news to food, celebrity to science, politics to sports. More information here.
• Read through a selection of recent features on its website.
• Review the submission guidelines here. Note that these are the publication's general guidelines to help you refine your pitch. You must still follow the editor's specific instructions above.
• Check out our collection of pitch excerpts on this page and find more sample pitches at The Open Notebook Database and at SuccessfulPitches.com.
• Do not forget to end your pitch with (1) a short introduction about yourself; (2) a paragraph highlighting your writing experience, relevant credentials and publication credits; and (3) links to your strongest work or portfolio, and online profile.

* * * * * * * * * *

LOOKING FOR MORE OPPORTUNITIES? Find additional jobs on Extra. Check out the upcoming deadlines on our PLUS+ Calendar. Filter the listings by category (worldwide opportunities, high-paying leads, paying publications, and non-pitching jobs). Use the search form on the homepage to find opportunities relevant to your interests.

WANT OUR DIGEST delivered to your inbox on a daily basis? Go to your email settings and make sure the notifications for Write Jobs PLUS+ are turned on. Want more tips? Read the welcome notes here.